Hidden in Plain Sight
by Eye of the Storm321
Summary: Shade's grace has always made her the perfect thief. It kept her and her friends safe and out of harms way. But when the king of Estill forces her and her friends to work for him they discover a plan that will change all their lives. (This is set in the world of Graceling but it is long before the books. I wasn't sure what to rate it so just ignore it)
1. Chapter 1

**Hey. So this is the start to a story I'm re-writing. This is just the prologue. Please comment/review. CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM IS GOOD just don't be a jerk. Just a warning, my spelling and grammar is awful. Sorry in advanced :)**

The crowded street seemed to hold a bountyless realm of colors and sounds. The street is overrun with merchants, shouting and waving their goods for all to see, and the innocent people, just trying to walk from here to there without being buried in a mountain of goods that they do not need. Wealthy landowners riding horses and wearing robes of bright colors tried to push their way past the mobs, their shouts of annoyance adding to the deafening din. The colorful stalls and loud sounds easily drew the eye of anyone who happens to be watching from a distance, causing their eyes to drift over the ragged girl sitting against a building, excluded from the others by her hollow stomach and and empty money bag.

A wealthy man, dressed in blue robes and escorted by a collection of soldiers brushed past the girl without giving her a second glance. She curled against the wall, pressing herself against it, trying to avoid the pounding of iron boots that followed in his wake. A young woman, wearing a long brown dress and red shawl, noticed the girl and pushed the merchant away from her, despite his protests that his apples were the freshest in all the kingdom of Estill. She walked towards the girl, who had buried her head between her knees, her sobs inaudible above the clamor. The woman stood looking down at the girl, pity written across her face.

"Hello darling. Are you alright?" the woman had to shout to make her voice heard. Her voice was sweet, but it was a sickly-sweet sound, the sound of someone fake.

The girl raised her head, her red hair falling over her shoulders, her thin arms pushing back the strands that fell in front of her eyes. Her eyes. How they seemed to glitter in the light that filtered over the stands and through the crowded city. At least, one of them did. Her left eye was a bright amber color, like honey that caught the light and seemed to radiate a bright glow. But her right eye was dark as night, her pupil unable to be distinguished from the iris. Her eyes were made even stranger by their red color and puffy eyelids because of her silent sobs. The women looked at her and took a step back.

"A..A Graceling." the women spluttered, the sweetness gone from her voice. The girl held out her hands, hoping for any coins of pity but the women turned and melted into the chaos of the street, rather risking being harassed by merchants then stare into those strange, sad eyes.

A boy pushed his way towards the girl, his long blonde hair falling over his face and dark clothing standing out against the bright colors of the street. The girl looked at him, her puffy eyes challenging him to back away in fright. But he continued walking, growing nearer and nearer with each step, seemingly unfazed by the strangeness of the girls eyes. He stopped, towering over her. Only then did his eyes meet hers, one green and the other brown. The girl looked at him, surprised as he sat down facing her, four colors, aimed at each other.

"What is your name." his voice was the voice of a child, which came as a surprise to the girl. Although he didn't seem much older than her, his demeanor was that of a much older man. She continued to stare into his eyes.

"Can you speak?"

"Yes" the girl's voice was rough and squeaky, as though she hadn't talked in awhile.

"Well then what's your name."

"I don't have one."

"Come on. Everyone has a name."

"Not me."

The boy sighed, recognizing the look of stubborn determination on the girl's face.

"Fine then. Well I'm Oak"

The girl snickered. "What kind of a name is Oak"

"The kind I gave myself when my parents got rid of me" her giggles stopped. "They didn't want me so I don't want them. I'm not going to keep the stupid name they gave me."

The girl looked at him, respect and awe across her face.

"If you don't want your old name make up a new one."

"Alright uh.."

"How about one around your Grace." he glanced at her surprised face "It's part of who you are, not something you should be ashamed of" she nodded and thought.

Her left eye twinkled and she smiled.

"Shade, my name is Shade"

"Nice to meet you Shade. I'm Oak and i'm ten"

"I'm eight"

"Here let me show you around" Oak stood up and brushed himself off. He reached out and gingerly grabbed her skinny arm, helping her up. She grinned and stood, following him as he led her through the noisy street, trusting him entirely.

 **Hope you enjoyed. Please review. I will try and add more soon but no promises.**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Alright so I know it's been a while since I wrote anything. My apologies and I hope I will be able to write more soon. Just a warning in advance, this chapter is violent. If you don't want to read anything violent do not read this. Other then that, enjoy and don't be surprised if their is violence.**_

The hallway was filled with dim, flickering candles. The shadows seemed to stretch around the room, making the hallway feel smaller. Three guards stood silhouetted against the flickering light, their suits appearing to glow orange instead of the silver they worked so hard to keep clean. Nothing moved except the dancing candle light and the occasional twitch of the soldiers. None of them noticed the girl crouching in the shadows.

A voice filled my head, pounding against the inside of my skull.

"Shade? You're not dead right?"

I pressed my fingers to my temples, positive the soldiers would hear the voice. Yet they stayed still, unmoving.

"No. I'm not dead. Stop shouting." I thought back, letting out a small hiss of discomfort.

"She's not dead Oak, stop worrying.

"Con, I told you not to say anything unless you need to" I could hear Con mumbling on to Oak and Lucky, saying something that I could not make out. I felt a momentary lapse in my mind before Con strengthened the connection between our minds.

"Sorry Shade," his voice came through, although it sounded distant, like someone shouting from far away. "I'm having trouble focusing."

"Alright, alright. Concentrate. It's just like we practiced." I waited patiently as Con fought to connect with me. Even after years, it still felt strange with someone else in your head. Not that I can complain, Con has saved my life many times. I can still remember finding him, hiding under a thin leather tarp, shivering and terrified. He had fled his home and his family after he discovered that who ever he touched could hear his thoughts, and he could hear theirs. He called himself Conscience, the little voice in your head telling you what to do.

"There, alright." Con's voice rang in my head. "About why I bothered you and your oh so important sneaking around, Lucky says you need to kill the guards."

"What? Kill them? I can get around them just fine."

"Yeah well, this is Lucky we're talking about. She's never wrong."

"Yeah, yeah alright."

I stood, reaching out with my mind and drawing the dancing shadows towards me. They obeyed happily, wrapping me in their welcoming darkness and blocking me from anyone's sight. I took a step and the shadows followed, absorbing the sound of my bare footsteps. I was nothing, invisible and soundless. Even as I approached the guards they remained motionless, unable to see me even as I stood right next to the smallest guard. I reached into my satchel, which hung on my belt. Inside, their was a gleaming dagger, encrusted with a small gem on the hilt. It felt natural in my hand and I wrapped the shadows around it, hiding its polished blade from view. I hesitated a second, before plunging the dagger in between his helmet and his armor.

The man collapses instantly, twitching at my feet, blood running out of the cracks in his vulnerable armor. I was already on the move, I jumped, my feet pressing against the wall and I kicked off, flying through the orange candle light above their heads, before diving into the shadows again. The shadows welcomed me, wrapping me in their darkness. The guards were in a panic. They drew their swords, waving them frantically, trying to find their attacker. I swung my arm, sinking my dagger into the next soldier's throat. He let out a gurgling scream, spewing blood onto the floor before collapsing onto the ground. The last soldier stood his ground, his head swinging from left to right. I stepped into the light, letting the shadows recede back and revealing myself. He stared at me, his eyes taking in my scrawny frame and settling on my eyes. One black, one amber, both filled with determination. He barely had time to stutter "Gra..Graceling" before I hurled my dagger at him. My blade struck true, sinking into his throat. I looked down, waiting until his ragged breaths stopped to retrieve my bloody dagger.

I knelt by the soldiers, looking for anything valuable. I found some coins and put them in my satchel along with my bloody knife.

"Con, I'm here. Ask Lucky were to go now."

"Uh she says go straight three paces then lean against the wall."

"What?"

"Just do it."

I start forward, stepping over the men and taking three strides forward. I lean against the wall and hear a loud groan as the wall swings forward, revealing a secret room. Inside, sits a chest, with a large lock on it. I start forward, kneeling in front of the chest. I take the lock in my hand, grinning.

"Looks pretty old. It shouldn't be hard to break." I think.

I take a tiny bag off my left wrist and open it. Inside are my lock picks. I take them out, inserting them into the lock and beginning to work. After about a minute, the lock clicks and opens. I push the lid of the chest up, leaning over to see what's inside. A large gem is inside. It is blue and glows brightly. I reach my hand in to touch it and immediately it begins to vibrate, radiating heat. I yank my hands back and the gem goes still. Grumbling, I take length of cloth, tying my hair in place and wrap it around the gem. My frizzy red hair takes this opportunity to try and escape, bouncing out until it encircles my head, making it look on fire. I stuff the gem into my satchel, trying fruitlessly to tame my wild hair. Having given up on my hair, I instead look down at my hands. They are still red with blood. The blood has begun to dry, leaving brown-red marks on my petite hands. I let out a sigh and my hands would drop to my sides. I step out of the room, letting the shadows in the dimly lit hallway engulf me. The shadows may hide me from view, yet as I step over the bodies of the men I murdered, I realize they can not hide me from my own guilt.

Oak is waiting for me when I reach the town. He is dressed in the clothes of a farmer, keeping his hat low to cover his eyes. His voice echoes across the square as he loudly barters with a shopkeeper about the price of bread, yet he casually searches the crowd, seeking me out. His eyes settle on me and he nods over to a secluded corner of the square. I walk quickly over their, listening to his shouts. I stand in the corner, using the shadows cast by a tavern to dull my appearance. If someone were to look over at me, their eyes would stray over me. I was not invisible, just murky. Oak pushed his way through the crowds over to me. He looked me over, pausing on my bloody clothes.

"What happened? Are you hurt." he grabbed my arm looking at me as though he a sword was sticking out of my chest.

"No. I'm fine. It's not my blood Oak." His eyes filled with relief and he dropped my arm looking sheepish.

"Well did you get it." he questioned.

"Of course I did."

"Good, because our employer wants it tomorrow and he did not look like someone we should disappoint." He looked back at my blood-stained shirt. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

Oak grabbed my arm, pulling me through the crowd. We walked through a small alley, immerging in a field of green. A road wound its way into trees in the distance and bright blue birds flew overhead. The sun was setting, filling the sky with bright orange clouds. Oak dragged me through tall grass, that scraped against our knees and poked my bare feet. We walked until we reached the tall trees, than Oak dropped my hand and stepped into the forest. I followed a few steps behind, glad for the large shadows that welcomed me. After the sun had set and the stars were just beginning to appear in the sky, we pushed our way into a large clearing. A fire was in the middle, flickering brightly and crackling, shooting off sparks into the air. The shadows recoil from the light, leaving me defenceless as they hovered around the clearing edge.

Con and Lucky sat on the other side of the fire, deep in conversation. Con looks up, his white and grey eyes settling on me and his cracked lips turning into a grin. He pushed himself off the ground, striding over to us, his thin arms swinging with each step. He stopped in front of me and I had to look down at him, since his head only reached my shoulders.

"So Shade, did you get the gem." he said. He crossed his arms and I couldn't help noticing his black gloves.

" 'Course I did." I reach into my satchel, pulling out the gem, tightly wrapped in cloth. Con reaches out, taking the bundle from me.

"Don't unwrap it." Lucky's voice rang through the clearing and we turned to look at her. She was standing, her bright blue eye fixed on us. Where her other eye should be was a patch of cloth, covering a hideous scar. Her long black bangs covered her her left side of her face, blocking most of the patch from view. She was taller then me and prettier, her frame curvy and her face beautiful. We found her four years ago, or she found us really. Me and Oak were walking in a small market in the north of Estill, when she walked up to us, introducing herself as Lucky and asking to come with us. Her grace might be the most important of us all, her instincts are never wrong. Lucky has the uncanny ability to always make the right choice to protect herself. She crossed the clearing in graceful strides, taking the bundle and putting it near the fire.

"No one touch it." She said her eye sweeping over us.

"Don't worry Lucky, no one is gonna touch it." Con said, yawning loudly. "I' going to sleep, wake me up if that gem explodes. Or better yet just don't wake me ever." He scurries across the clearing, slipping through a flap between to bushed. Leaves and mud covers it, yet I can just make out a tent if I look close enough.

"For once Con has the right idea." Oak says walking towards the tent. I follow a few steps behind. After Oak has disappeared into the tent, I walk to another flap and climb inside the empty tent.

The tent isn't large but there is just enough room to stand up, if you bend down a little. I quickly change into a thin dress and climbing under my blanket before Lucky crawls into the tent. I can just make out the sounds of Oak and Con, arguing about something, before my eyes close and I sleep.

 _ **I hope you enjoyed it. I want to post the next chapter soon but I'm not sure how likely that is to happen. I apologize for any and all**_ ** _grammatical errors in this chapter or really anything I write because I suck at grammar. Anyways, constructive criticism appreciated. Thank you_**


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